We welcome the Government's plan to ban claims management companies from cold calling. As the founder of both the Ethical Marketing Charter and Stop Nuisance Calls campaign, the amendment tabled to the Government's Financial Guidance and Claims Bill is a landmark moment in our long-running campaign to stamp out this rogue practice.
An amendment has been added to the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations to stop live unsolicited telephone calls being used for marketing claims management services, except where the person called has given prior consent.
Simon Trott, Managing Director of National Accident Helpline, said:
For many years cold calling has been a blight on the personal injury sector, causing stress and inconvenience to the public.
We have been leading the charge on industry calls for a blanket ban on cold calling, and the Government's action to put an end to this unethical practice is long overdue.
We look forward to continuing to work with the Government and its agencies to ensure the effective implementation of the ban, with enforcement carefully considered and properly resourced.
In our 24 year history, we've never made a cold call, but we constantly receive complaints from people who've received nuisance calls pretending to be us. We can help you report such calls on our policy against cold calling page.
If you've been cold called or are worried about being cold called, we advise to the following steps:
- Take extra care when completing forms that ask for your data. There are often tick or check boxes that can allow you to prevent your data being shared
- Register with the TPS (Telephone Preference Service). You can register both your landline and mobile numbers. Businesses are legally required to check if you're registered with the TPS before contacting you
- Don't give out your details unless you're sure you know who you're dealing with. This includes over the phone too.
Try to get the name of their company, registered address and telephone number so that you can report them fully.